What to do when the power goes out

You are home watching a movie with your family when they power suddenly goes out.  You scramble to check to see if you blew a fuse. They are fine.  You wonder how long it will take to restore the power.  Your children are getting frustrated because they don’t understand that the TV isn’t working because the power is gone, repeatedly asking for you to turn the TV back on so you can finish watching your Netflix movie.

You scramble and find your 3G, 3GS or 4G device.  You huddle around your gadget and attempt to watch the rest of your show while waiting for the power to return.

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Read the rest at Notes on Parenting.

Schools Out For The Summer; Now What?

Exams are completed, graduations are coming to an end, and your children are now piling home for the summer. For nine months the home was yours, now your offspring and co. are invading your premises. It is a transition that comes every year, some parents dread it and are like the father in the Staples back-to-school commercial from years ago: ‘It is the most wonderful time of the year!’ Also, your children, who are used to having their planners filled from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., now have eight hours at their disposal and they aren’t 100 per cent sure of how to invest that time. School is out, now what do we do? All of us: children, students and parents need ideas.


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Read the rest on Notes on Parenting.

Happy Canada Day!!!

Happy Birthday Canada!  This is the one day that happens every year where Canadians become very patriotic.  I love it.  We have a wonderful nation where we can live, play, work and grow together.

In celebration of Canada Day, I recommend you take this Canada Quiz from the National Post. The best Canada test I found among the papers I read/subscribe to (Which are many, I have a digital subscription to The Province, Edmonton Journal, StarPhoenix and the National Post all under one subscription, thanks Canada.com.  But I also keep tabs on the Winnipeg Free Press, Toronto Star, Globe & Mail, New York Times, Deseret Morning News, and the Battleford's News Optimist among many other small market papers.... just to name a few).  So when I say it is the best Canada Test I found, I mean it.

Also, to celebrate Canada Day, I have to share my favourite moment of someone singing O! Canada.  It was during the 2002 Salt Lake City Winter Olympics.  Chandra Crawford had just won a gold medal in her event, and when it came time to raise the flags, she BELTED out the National Anthem.  It is beautiful.  I admire her for her work and passion, so much so that I tried to get my daughters name to have Chandra in it.  But alas, it didn't happen. But watch this:



Happy Canada Day!

Fathers Day Gift Giving Ideas

I usually don’t write about gift giving ideas for Mother’s Day, because most people are aware of how to make this day work, and know what to give for gifts.  However, when it comes to Father’s Day, there is mass confusion, and a distortion in the media for gift giving ideas.

We are told to get dad the latest set of tools, a new computer, a car wash, socks, or the latest movie.  While these may be great gifts, it doesn’t provide the best gifts for Father’s Day.

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Read the rest of this column at the Battleford's News Optimist or at Notes on Parenting.

Schools Out; Now What?

As seen in the Battlefords Regional Optimist.

Exams are completed, graduations are coming to an end, and your children are now piling home for the summer. For nine months the home was yours, now your offspring and co. are invading your premises. It is a transition that comes every year, some parents dread it and are like the father in the Staples back-to-school commercial from years ago: ‘It is the most wonderful time of the year!’

Also, your children, who are used to having their planners filled from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., now have eight hours at their disposal and they aren’t 100 per cent sure of how to invest that time. School is out, now what do we do? All of us: children, students and parents need ideas.

We all have the dreams of what we want to do this summer, weekends at the lake, time spent out in the sun, quality time together, and many other interactive activities. However, what usually happens is, hours in front of the TV, video games, and maybe a little physical activity, with the road of least resistance being frequently taken.

There was a study recently released by Statistics Canada that found that childhood obesity and being overweight is linked to low self-esteem. Interestingly these children were also more likely to not be physically active and to do poorly in school. This study also dispelled parental income as being a source of self-esteem. I love the fact that you can’t buy high self-esteem.

Now, I am not saying that all of our children are going to be obese because they play video games during summer. What I am saying is that, that path of least resistance, of playing video games and watching TV can lead to low self-esteem and school performance. So, here are some ideas of how to optimize you and your family’s summer, and build self-esteem along the way.

First, let us be discriminators of the television. According to tvturnoff.org, we spend, on average, 1023 hours watching television in a year. Watch TV and play video games for two hours every day. That’s it. Maybe then we will only watch the shows we really want, and play our favourite video games and spend less time in front of the TV. We can live our dreams instead of watching people live theirs.

Second, become active. Go outside and play. Join a sports team. Get friends together and play ball, of any kind. Go bike riding. Just do something active outside. Make it a weekly event. If not, make sure you exercise for at least 30 minutes a day.

Third, read a book. You now have ample time, maybe read that book that you wanted to read all year but weren’t able to during the school year. Maybe read the Twilight series and see what the hype is all about. Most of all, keep those brain cells growing.

Fourth, parents this is for you to arrange. Make sure that you have a night a week to spend with your family. Any night. Do something you have never done before. Go to a museum. Go bowling or mini golfing. Maybe make a cake together. Go swimming. Play that board game that you got for Christmas and haven’t played since Boxing Day. Do something weekly with your children.

Most of all, enjoy the summer weather, together. Yes, some will have to work, but it can still be done. Let us get out and be active, turn off that TV, read a book, and play a sport, and maybe, just maybe, you will have discovered something new this summer.